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Panthers Rumors

Four Players Placed On Waivers

February 19, 2019 at 11:08 am CDT | by Gavin Lee Leave a Comment

Four players have been placed on waivers. Patrick Eaves of the Anaheim Ducks and Micheal Haley of the Florida Panthers are on regular waivers, while goaltenders Thomas McCollum and Michael Leighton have both signed NHL contracts for the rest of the season and were required to be put through the process. McCollum’s two-way deal with the Nashville Predators will see him earn a prorated $650K at the NHL level ($100K in the AHL) for the rest of the season, while Leighton’s contract with the Vancouver Canucks will carry the same NHL salary.

Eaves is perhaps the most surprising of the group, given the excitement over his arrival in Anaheim at the end of the 2016-17 season. The veteran forward found a perfect fit with the Ducks and scored 11 goals down the stretch for them, finishing with a career-high of 32 on the season. Unfortunately, things took a disastrous turn last season when Eaves was diagnosed with Guillain-Barre Syndrome and played just two games for the Ducks. This year has been marred by injury after injury, leading to just seven games played by the 34-year old winger.

With another season remaining on his three-year, $9.45MM contract it will be hard for any team to justify a claim on Eaves, who doesn’t have a point this year. With that in mind, using waivers will give the Ducks a chance to move him back and forth if need be.

Vancouver has been strapped for goaltending help since trading away Anders Nilsson and losing Mike McKenna on waivers, and Leighton has done enough to deserve an NHL deal. The 37-year old netminder has a .912 save percentage over four games with the Utica Comets and will likely serve as emergency insurance for the Canucks down the stretch.

AHL| Anaheim Ducks| Florida Panthers| Michael Leighton| Nashville Predators| Patrick Eaves| Vancouver Canucks| Waivers

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Senators’ Julius Bergman Likely To Return To Sweden

February 17, 2019 at 10:31 am CDT | by Zach Leach 1 Comment

The entire Mike Hoffman situation last summer was regrettable for all involved and forced the Ottawa Senators’ hand. However, since the initial trade out of Ottawa, it has only gotten worse for the Senators. First, the team received an underwhelming return back for the perennial 20-goal scorer; the San Jose Sharks sent capable, but overpaid forward Mikkel Boedker, prospect defenseman Julius Bergman, and a sixth-round pick in exchange for Hoffman, Cody Donaghey, and a fifth-round pick. Then, they watched as the Sharks flipped Hoffman the same day to the Florida Panthers for second-, fourth-, and fifth-round picks, a much more desirable return. Over the course of this season, the Senators have been disappointed by Bergman, the default centerpiece of the Hoffman package, who has just six points through 33 games with the AHL’s Belleville Senators. Now, it seems they are about to lose Bergman entirely, just one year after acquiring him.

Sport Bladet, a reputable Swedish news source, reports that Bergman has agreed in principal on a contract to return to his former Swedish Hockey League club, Frolunda HC. Seeing as the NHL season is not yet over, Bergman cannot officially agree to any such contract. However, the 23-year-old defender is at the end of his entry-level contract and will be a restricted free agent this off-season. The Senators can only issue a qualifying offer to retain his rights, but can do nothing to stop him from signing in Sweden if he so chooses.

For all of his struggles this season, Bergman is still considered a promising prospect. A second-round pick out of Frolunda in 2014, Bergman made the jump overseas immediately to play with the OHL’s London Knights. In his one junior season, he scored 13 goals and added 29 assists as a top-pair defenseman for the Knights. He spent the next three seasons with the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda, recording 61 total points, highlighted by a 30-point campaign in 2016-17 that also included a dominant postseason performance. However, that production has dried up since his arrival in the Senators’ organization. An offensive defenseman who suddenly isn’t scoring, Bergman hasn’t given the team any reason to rush him to the NHL, yet the Sport Bladet article cites his frustration at not getting any NHL opportunity as one of the reasons for his return to Sweden.

It is still possible that Bergman decides to stay with the Senators instead of joining Frolunda. It is also possible that he spends a year or two in Sweden and wants to return as a more polished product. However, there is also a strong possibility that these next few months in the AHL are the last we see of Bergman in North America, adding insult to injury for a poor trade made in a difficult situation by the Senators.

AHL| Florida Panthers| Injury| London Knights| Mike Hoffman| Mikkel Boedker| OHL| Ottawa Senators| San Jose Sharks| Swedish Hockey League

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Minor Transactions: 02/17/2019

February 17, 2019 at 9:33 am CDT | by Zach Leach Leave a Comment

Yesterday saw the Hurricanes move into the Eastern playoff picture at the expense of the Penguins, the Bruins pass the Maple Leafs in the Atlantic, and the Blues win their ninth straight as they pull away from the Western wild card race entirely. With another six games on the docket today, featuring eight teams still jockeying for playoff position, we could see more movement in the standings. Meanwhile, there will definitely be some movement across NHL rosters, as teams prepare for the week ahead. Keep up with all the action here:

  • The Vancouver Canucks recalled a newly-acquired player before last night’s game, but it wasn’t Ryan Spooner. Luke Schenn, acquired in the Michael Del Zotto trade in January, was given his first Canucks promotion the team announced, although he did not suit up last night. The veteran blue liner has played well since joining the AHL’s Utica Comets and the Canucks could use some solid play on the back end while dealing with several injuries.
  • The Ottawa Senators announced the return of young goaltender Filip Gustavsson to the AHL, as well as veteran forward Darren Archibald, who has become a fixture of the team’s the daily transactions. Gustavsson, 20, was given his first recall on Tuesday to serve as the backup to Anders Nilsson while Craig Anderson was sidelined. Gustavsson did not see any action and will now head back to the Belleville Senators. Meanwhile, his reassignment implies that Anderson has been cleared to return to action.
  • CapFriendly reports the Colorado Avalanche have sent Sheldon Dries and Dominic Toninato back to the minors. Dries has skated in three times as many games with the Avs this season than the AHL’s Colorado Eagles and has never been down for too long, whereas Toninato has only gotten into two NHL games as opposed to 37 AHL games and has been more productive at the lower level. Neither player has been any help in solving the Avalanche’s secondary scoring problem, so for now they’ll get some work in with the Eagles. BSN Denver’s Adrian Dater reports the Avalanche have recalled Andrew Agozzino. The 28-year-old veteran hasn’t played an NHL game since the 2015-16 season. He currently has 22 goals and 50 points in 48 games with the Eagles.
  • No sooner than he was called up is Tucker Poolman being sent back down. The Winnipeg Jets announced that the 25-year-old defenseman has been reassigned to the AHL’s Manitoba Moose after he was recalled just yesterday, only to watch the Jets’ game from the press box. Poolman has yet to play in the NHL this season after getting into 24 contests last year. Poolman is signed for two more years and is hoping to earn a role in Winnipeg sooner rather than later.
  • The Athletic’s George Richards relays from head coach Bob Boughner that the Florida Panthers have placed Roberto Luongo on the bereavement list due to a death in the family. He will be unavailable through at least tonight’s game. As such, the team will call up young Samuel Montembeault from the AHL’s Springfield Thunderbirds to back up James Reimer for the time being. The team has since confirmed the move.
  • Casey Nelson has finished his own conditioning stint and has been recalled by the Buffalo Sabres, the team announced. Nelson has been sidelined with an upper-body injury since early December, but after a five-game stint with the AHL’s Rochester Americans he looks ready for a return.
  • The Arizona Coyotes announced they have recalled Michael Bunting from the Tucson Roadrunners of the AHL just a two days after the team put him on waivers and sent him to the AHL. The 23-year-old Bunting has appeared in just five games for Arizona, but has flashed some potential in Tucson as he has posted 11 goals and 27 points in 31 games.
  • The St. Louis Blues announced they have assigned forward Sammy Blais to the San Antonio Rampage after being recalled Saturday. He was recalled to fill in as an emergency forward for Sunday’s game. He didn’t play and now will return to San Antonio. Blais has 18 points in 25 games for the Rampage.

Andrew Agozzino| Arizona Coyotes| Buffalo Sabres| Colorado Avalanche| Florida Panthers| Ottawa Senators| St. Louis Blues| Transactions| Vancouver Canucks| Winnipeg Jets

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Deadline Primer: Florida Panthers

February 15, 2019 at 2:00 pm CDT | by Zach Leach Leave a Comment

With the trade deadline fast approaching, we continue our look at the situation for each team over the coming weeks. Where do they stand, what do they need to do, and what assets do they have to fill those needs? As we continue with the Atlantic Division, here is a look at the Florida Panthers.

For all the talk of the Florida Panthers trading for Artemi Panarin and/or Sergei Bobrovksy, it doesn’t really make much sense. The Panthers are 11 points back of a playoff spot and don’t seem to have the makings of late-season run like in 2017-18. The team doesn’t need Panarin and Bobrovsky this year, they want them for the future. Luckily, both are slated to be unrestricted free agents this summer. The rumors of Florida’s interest may very well be true, but they will take their shot in the off-season.

No, the truth this season is that the Panthers are pure sellers and that’s it. The team entered the campaign with high expectations and have failed to perform up to the level many assumed they would. Florida has the talent in place, but simply couldn’t put it together this year. They will sell off what they can, tweak the roster this summer, and likely enter next year with high expectations again.

Record

24-24-8, sixth in the Atlantic Division

Deadline Status

Seller

Deadline Cap Space

$11.67MM in full-season cap hit, 1/3 used salary cap retention slots, 43/50 contracts per CapFriendly

Upcoming Draft Picks

2019: FLA 1st, PIT 2nd, EDM 3rd, FLA 4th, MIN 4th, PIT 4th, FLA 5th, FLA 6th, FLA 7th
2020: FLA 1st, FLA 2nd, FLA 3rd, FLA 4th, FLA 5th, TOR 5th, FLA 6th, FLA 7th

Trade Chips

The Panthers already made a major trade this season, sending Nick Bjugstad and Jared McCann to the Pittsburgh Penguins for Derick Brassard, Riley Sheahan, and a package of picks. While a second-rounder and two fourth-rounders is a nice get for Florida, this deal is still only half done. Barring an unexpected extension of either player, both Brassard and Sheahan are impending unrestricted free agents brought in as pieces for Florida to flip before the deadline. Expect the Panthers to shop both aggressively.

Yet, even prior to that trade the Panthers had UFA pieces ready to move. Veteran bottom-six forwards Troy Brouwer, Micheal Haley, and the recently-waived Jamie McGinn are all up for grabs. Defensemen Bogdan Kiselevich, Julian Melchiori, and Chris Wideman, another player acquired earlier this season, are depth options on the block as well. None of these players will return much to Florida, but if they’re able to trade all or most of them, it will result in a nice bundle of mid- to late-round picks or project prospects, which never hurts.

The team has already refuted reports that Jonathan Huberdeau is available, but the same might not be true for several other Florida players with term or team control. Mike Hoffman has been a great fit for the Panthers and is on pace for a career year offensively. However, he has just one year left on his contract and would be more highly-valued on the market now as opposed to this off-season or next season. The same can be said for Evgenii Dadonov, who has quietly been a dominant presence in Florida but will be due a significant raise after next season. There isn’t a great chance that either player is moved, but it’s certainly possible. More likely, albeit for a significantly lesser return, is that the Panthers move on from an aging RFA defender like MacKenzie Weegar or Ian McCoshen, if there’s a market. Neither has developed the way the team had hoped and it seems unlikely that they’re both back on the roster next year.

If the Panthers can figure out some way (read: retained salary) to move James Reimer, they will. The Reimer-Roberto Luongo tandem experiment has not worked out, as evidenced by the teams purported interest in Bobrovksy. Florida does not want to buy out or bury Reimer if they can trade him. Some team in need of a backup may be willing to make a deal if the Panthers eat a chunk of his $3.4MM cap hit over two more seasons. Sadly, Reimer has been the better of the two goalies this season and Luongo’s contract is basically immovable.

Five Players To Watch For: F Derick Brassard, F Riley Sheahan, F Troy Brouwer, D Bogdan Kiselevich, D MacKenzie Weegar

Team Needs

1) Prospect Defensemen: The Panthers’ biggest needs are a starting goaltender and top-four defenseman; they won’t be getting those at the deadline. However, those needs are reflective of a team defense that is simply horrid. Not a single player on Florida’s roster has a positive plus/minus following the trade of Bjugstad. No other team in the NHL can claim that unfortunate mark. This has to change if the Panthers ever want to improve. Looking ahead, the team is missing that top defensive prospect who could come in and make an impact without being yet another defensive liability. While Florida has some promising forwards in the pipeline, they should target a high-upside blue liner if possible.

2) Draft Picks: Do the Panthers really need draft picks? No. This team wants to retool in the off-season and try to compete again next year, rather than rebuild. However, when most of your deadline pieces are depth players on expiring contracts, the best you can do is maximize your draft pick return. Those picks could then be used on prospects, but also traded away for immediate help as well. If the Panthers can’t pry a top prospect – preferably a defenseman, but a forward is fine – for Brassard, look for the team to target another second-round selection this year to replace their own and pair with Pittsburgh’s.

Artemi Panarin| Bogdan Kiselevich| Chris Wideman| Deadline Primer 2019| Derick Brassard| Florida Panthers| James Reimer| Jamie McGinn| Jared McCann| Jonathan Huberdeau| Julian Melchiori| Los Angeles Kings| Micheal Haley| Mike Hoffman| Nick Bjugstad| Prospects| RFA| Salary Cap

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Panthers Place Mackenzie Weegar On IR, Activate Jayce Hawryluk

February 14, 2019 at 3:00 pm CDT | by Zach Leach Leave a Comment

Rookie forward Jayce Hawryluk has returned from a stint on the injured reserve at the earliest possible date, after being sidelined early last week. Unfortunately, in announcing his activation, the Florida Panthers also noted that defenseman Mackenzie Weegar is headed for his own stretch on the IR.

Weegar, 25, has missed the Panthers’ past two games with an undisclosed upper-body injury. The team’s penalty minutes leader, Weegar plays a physical style on Florida’s bottom pairing and has been known to run into injuries from time to time. He missed time last season due to a lower-body injury, lost three games to a shoulder injury in October, and most recently was out four games earlier this month with a concussion. The concussion could very well be the current cause of Weegar’s absence, but the team has not confirmed that is the case. In his absence, the Panthers will lean on their top two pairs for more ice time, while Ian McCoshen should draw back into the lineup. As for Weegar, the impending RFA is on pace to record career highs across the board and will look to get back on the ice as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, the Cats will welcome Hawryluk back to the roster. The 23-year-old forward has played in 19 games for Florida, recording five points, and additionally has been a point-per-game scorer for the AHL’s Springfield Thunderbirds this season. A 2014 second-round pick, Hawryluk has tapped into his offensive instincts this season and finally looks like the player he was in juniors. With Evgenii Dadonov and Colton Sceviour currently sidelined, the Panthers needed Hawryluk’s offense back in the lineup.

AHL| Colton Sceviour| Evgeni Dadonov| Florida Panthers| Injury| RFA

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Snapshots: Three Stars, Ward, Huberdeau

February 11, 2019 at 3:30 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee 3 Comments

The NHL has released their three stars of the week, and once again a young goaltender leads the way. Jordan Binnington is the top star for last week after going 3-0 with a .954 save percentage. The St. Louis Blues have turned their season around after a rough start, and Binnington looks like he might be the answer to their goaltending woes. The 25-year old had just a single NHL game under his belt before this season but is now 9-1-1 on the year with a .931 save percentage.

While the second star is a familiar face in Patrice Bergeron, third place went to a player who has faced a lot of turmoil in a short career. Dylan Strome has found immediate success with the Chicago Blackhawks and now has 30 points in 32 games since being acquired earlier this season. The 2015 third overall pick didn’t live up to expectations in Arizona, but seems to have found his footing alongside former junior teammate Alex DeBrincat and the rest of the Chicago lineup.

  • Long-time NHL forward Joel Ward has retired from his playing career, and will finish with 726 regular season games played. Suiting up for Minnesota, Nashville, Washington and San Jose, Ward was a beloved teammate and consistent producer in both the regular season and playoffs. He scored seven goals and 13 points with the Sharks en route to their 2016 Stanley Cup Finals appearance, but never did get to raise the Cup over his head. The undrafted forward ends with 304 points and 261 penalty minutes.
  • The Florida Panthers have already traded away Nick Bjugstad and Jared McCann to free up some cap space moving forward, and Frank Seravalli of TSN believes they may do it again. Seravalli has added Jonathan Huberdeau to his Trade Bait board and suggests that the 25-year old forward could be used to entice the Columbus Blue Jackets to give up Artemi Panarin—as long as he comes with a contract extension. Huberdeau has a full no-movement clause that begins on July 1st, and four years remaining on his contract that carries an average annual value of $5.9MM.

Artemi Panarin| Chicago Blackhawks| Columbus Blue Jackets| Dylan Strome| Florida Panthers| Joel Ward| Jonathan Huberdeau| Patrice Bergeron| Snapshots| St. Louis Blues

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Minor Transactions: 02/10/2019

February 10, 2019 at 10:30 am CDT | by Zach Leach Leave a Comment

After a 14-game slate yesterday, several teams are back in action today as the NHL trots out eight more games, including six matinees. Among the match-ups, St. Louis and Nashville will complete their weekend home-and-home series, in-state rivals Tampa and Florida are set to square off, and Chicago looks to extend their league-best six-game win streak as they host Detroit. Meanwhile, many teams will be tinkering with their rosters in anticipation of a new week of games. Tomorrow marks two weeks out from the NHL Trade Deadline and some minor moves could be clues of bigger things to come. Stay tuned right here:

  • The Philadelphia Flyers have recalled a recently-acquired piece. The team has announced that forward Justin Bailey has received his first call-up since coming over from the Buffalo Sabres last month. Bailey, 23, was swapped for Taylor Leier and since arriving in Lehigh Valley has five goals and seven points in ten games with the AHL Phantoms. Bailey has NHL experience with the Sabres, but this is the first test of how he fits in the Philly lineup. Ideally, Bailey will challenge to fill a starting winger spot next season in the likely absence of impending free agents Wayne Simmonds and Michael Raffl. 
  • Another player traded away by Buffalo is getting the opposite of an NHL opportunity. First-year pro Cliff Pu, the centerpiece prospect of the Jeff Skinner trade, has been reassigned by the Carolina Hurricanes from the AHL to the ECHL. Pu, a 2016 third-round pick, heads to the Florida Everblades after recording just six points through 42 games with the Charlotte Checkers, the team announced. Admittedly, Pu was joined by future second-, third-, and sixth-round picks in the Skinner return, but the optics are poor for the Hurricanes that Pu has struggled mightily in the minors while Skinner’s 33 goals are second-best in the NHL.
  • The Florida Panthers announced they have recalled forward Jamie McGinn from Springfield of the AHL and have placed Colton Sceviour on injured reserve with an undisclosed injury. McGinn was just placed on waivers on Feb. 1 and has looked impressive in four games with the Thunderbirds with two goals and four points. The 30-year-old underwent back surgery in September, but has shown he might be ready to return to the team’s bottom-six. Sceviour played a full shift Saturday against Washington and has five goals and 14 points.
  • With the loss of Sven Baertschi, who will be out for a while, the Vancouver Canucks announced they have recalled Zach MacEwen from the Utica Comets of the AHL. The 22-year-old was brought into the system as an undrafted free agent, but has thrived with Utica, especially this year where he has 17 goals and 42 points in 49 games along with 49 penalty minutes. He gets called up one day after posting a four-point game against Rochester.

AHL| Buffalo Sabres| Carolina Hurricanes| Colton Sceviour| ECHL| Florida Panthers| Injury| Jamie McGinn| Jeff Skinner| Justin Bailey| Michael Raffl| Philadelphia Flyers| Sven Baertschi| Taylor Leier| Transactions| Vancouver Canucks| Wayne Simmonds

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Minor Transactions: 02/08/19

February 8, 2019 at 8:31 am CDT | by Gavin Lee Leave a Comment

After an extremely busy night in the NHL the league is almost completely quiet this evening, with just one game between the Carolina Hurricanes and New York Rangers scheduled. Teams will surely use this day off to make slight tweaks to their roster, and we’ll be here keeping track of all the minor moves.

  • Casey Nelson has been sent to the minor leagues on a conditioning loan. The Buffalo Sabres defenseman has missed more than two months with an upper-body injury, but is apparently healthy enough to get back on the ice. Nelson, 26, had six points in 22 games before suffering the injury.
  • With Jayce Hawryluk heading to injured reserve, the Florida Panthers have recalled Bogdan Kiselevich from the minor leagues. Kiselevich hasn’t played nearly as much as expected when he signed out of the KHL, but could get another opportunity to show what he can do in order to entice a contender at the deadline.
  • Christian Djoos has been recalled from his conditioning loan by the Washington Capitals, but has not yet been activated from long-term injured reserve. Djoos could be ready to get back into the lineup this weekend, but does not have to come off LTIR until deemed completely healthy. Jonas Siegenthaler has been sent down to the minor leagues, signalling even further that Djoos will be activated at some point.
  • Cody Goloubef has been sent back down by the Ottawa Senators after playing in his first game of the season last night. The 29-year old defenseman was acquired by the Senators last month but is still expected to spend the majority of the year in the minor leagues.
  • Matt Luff has been sent down to the minors by the Los Angeles Kings, as the team prepares to activate Trevor Lewis from injured reserve. Luff has played in 30 games this season and has ten points, but will have to wait for his next chance in the NHL.
  • Malcolm Subban is healthy enough to resume playing for the Vegas Golden Knights, meaning Maxime Lagace has been sent back to the AHL. Lagace has been up with the team since the beginning of January, but only actually played in one game during that period.
  • The Colorado Avalanche have recalled Ryan Graves from the AHL, a welcome sight for many fans of the team. Graves made quite an impression during an earlier call-up and has two goals in nine games this season.
  • Egor Yakovlev has been sent back down to the minor leagues by the New Jersey Devils, who recently activated Ben Lovejoy off injured reserve. Yakovlev has played in 14 games this season for the Devils, providing five points.

AHL| Ben Lovejoy| Bogdan Kiselevich| Buffalo Sabres| Casey Nelson| Christian Djoos| Cody Goloubef| Colorado Avalanche| Florida Panthers| Injury| Jonas Siegenthaler| Los Angeles Kings| Malcolm Subban| Maxime Lagace| New Jersey Devils| Ottawa Senators| Transactions| Vegas Golden Knights| Washington Capitals

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Latest On Florida Panthers Interest In Sergei Bobrovsky

February 4, 2019 at 11:45 am CDT | by Gavin Lee 8 Comments

For months now the Columbus Blue Jackets have been the focus of many around the NHL as they prepare to deal with pending unrestricted free agents Sergei Bobrovsky and Artemi Panarin. Neither player seems likely to consider an extension with the Blue Jackets, meaning the team has a decision to make on whether to trade them before the upcoming deadline or keep them for a potential Stanley Cup run. Recently the Florida Panthers cleared out cap space by trading away Nick Bjugstad and Jared McCann, immediately leading many to speculate that they were gearing up for a run at both free agents in the summer.

That wait until summer may not be necessary though, as Larry Brooks of the New York Post tweets that the Panthers are interested in trading for Bobrovsky before the deadline in order to get him under contract. Remember players can only sign eight-year extensions with the team they spend the most recent trade deadline with, meaning the Panthers would be able to offer Bobrovsky an extra year of contract security. Brooks notes that the Panthers could potentially use newly acquired forward Derick Brassard as part of the package to get Bobrovsky to Sunrise.

Blue Jackets GM Jarmo Kekalainen has made it clear that he is willing to make a tough decision on both free agents, but will trade them only if they get the desired return. After losing five consecutive games and falling to fourth in the Metropolitan Division, perhaps it is getting easier to stomach the idea of moving their star players even if it will weaken their group for a playoff run.

Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic (subscription required) today pondered in his latest column whether the Blue Jackets would have interest in Jimmy Howard as a potential Bobrovsky replacement, but also touches on the idea that the Panthers will not be so quick to move on from Brassard. The Florida front office is hoping a late-season push can get them into the playoffs and wants to see how the former Pittsburgh Penguins forward fits in.

The other thing to consider when it comes to Bobrovsky’s potential fit in Florida is how it would affect the current goaltenders. The team already has Roberto Luongo and James Reimer under contract for a combined cap hit of nearly $8MM, with three and two years remaining on their respective contracts. An early retirement would mean cap recapture penalties (for both Vancouver and Florida at the moment) in the case of Luongo, but his health has also been a concern in recent years. There would obviously have to be a corresponding transaction of some sort if Bobrovsky was given an extension. One has to wonder if that would be another option for the Blue Jackets—taking on one of the current Panthers goaltenders.

There are now just three weeks before the NHL trade deadline and Columbus still has time to turn things around and establish themselves as contenders once again. If they do it will be extremely difficult to move on from two of the team’s best players, but it might be the right thing for the long-term health of the franchise.

Artemi Panarin| Columbus Blue Jackets| Derick Brassard| Florida Panthers| James Reimer

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Atlantic Notes: Larkin, Point, Brassard, Condon

February 2, 2019 at 4:29 pm CDT | by Holger Stolzenberg 3 Comments

The Detroit Red Wings pulled off a big overtime win over the Toronto Maple Leafs Friday, but suffered an even bigger loss when star center Dylan Larkin had to leave the game in overtime while trying to chase Mitch Marner. He was doubled over and appeared to hurt his rib cage.

Fox Sports John Keating reports that coach Jeff Blashill said that Larkin will miss one to two weeks with a strained oblique muscle, although the team is hoping he will only miss one week. He has already been ruled out for tonight’s game against Ottawa. Andreas Athanasiou is expected to replace Larkin at center on that line.

Larkin has been a key player for the struggling Red Wings. He is having a career-year as he already has 22 goals, just one shy of his career-high and is close to being a point-per game player.

  • In a mailbag article, The Athletic’s Joe Smith writes that Tampa Bay Lightning soon-to-be restricted free agent Brayden Point has made it quite clear that he wants to remain in Tampa Bay for a long time and the scribe suggests that the team might be best offering a five-year deal which might be the perfect compromise between a bridge deal and an eight-year pact. Both sides have agreed to put off contract talks until the summer. With 30 points goals and 65 points already in 51 games, the 22-year-old should receive quite a bump in pay when signing his new deal.
  • Even though the Pittsburgh Penguins were able to get their new acquisitions Nick Bjugstad and Jared McCann into their game Friday by giving them a police escort from the airport to the game, the Florida Panthers didn’t do the same thing. The Panthers, who acquired Derick Brassard, Riley Sheahan, three draft picks and future cap room from Pittsburgh earlier in the day Friday, opted to go without the pair Friday and are expected to have the two in the lineup Saturday against Vegas, according to Sun Sentinel’s Wells Dusenbury “I didn’t find out [about the trade] until about 11 [am],” Boughner said. “We were planning on having a different lineup in there tonight and so we built the lineup with what we had and unfortunately [Brassard and Sheahan] couldn’t get in for the game.”
  • The Ottawa Senators continue to be without goaltender Mike Condon, who the team placed on waivers on Oct. 31 who had and still is trying to come back from a hip injury, according to Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun. The veteran goaltender cleared waivers, but has appeared in just one game for the Belleville Senators in all that time. Condon has recently started skating and working out in Ottawa, but there remains no timetable for his return. The hope is that he can make a return to the ice for Belleville March. The team acquired goaltender Anders Nilsson to be their backup goaltender on Jan. 2, who has fared well in eight appearances for Ottawa with a .922 save percentage, meaning that Condon will have a tough time getting back into the goaltending rotation, barring injury.

Anders Nilsson| Andreas Athanasiou| Brayden Point| Derick Brassard| Detroit Red Wings| Dylan Larkin| Florida Panthers| Injury| Jared McCann| Jeff Blashill| Mike Condon| Mitch Marner| Nick Bjugstad| Ottawa Senators| Pittsburgh Penguins| Riley Sheahan| Tampa Bay Lightning| Toronto Maple Leafs

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    Artemi Panarin Will Not Negotiate Extension With Columbus This Season

    2019 Midseason UFA Power Rankings: 1-10

    2019 Midseason UFA Power Rankings: 11-20

    Peter Chiarelli Fired By Edmonton Oilers

    Teuvo Teravainen Signs Five-Year Extension

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